Pure Political Payoff

It’s not exactly a secret that Democrats are in the pocket of the labor movement.   Despite the country’s shrinking union membership, labor remains a potent force in electoral politics — and its support goes almost exclusively to Democrats.  USA Today’s got a handy report on how their influence plays out now that Democrats control Congress:

The Democratic majority in Congress, which was elected with the help of $57.6 million in campaign contributions from unions, has pushed measures to increase wages on public projects, ease rules for unionizing workplaces and cut funding for corruption investigators.

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One immediate impact of labor’s clout has come in trade policy: Democrats are demanding union-backed changes to environmental, worker safety and other elements of four trade agreements negotiated by the Bush administration with South Korea, Columbia, Panama and Peru. Trade agreements require congressional approval.

“It’s pure political payoff,” said Rick Berman, a corporate lobbyist and public relations consultant who directs the Center for Union Facts, an anti-labor group. “The unions said, ‘We got the money. You listen to us or you’re going hungry.’ “

Of course, unions have never exactly been known for their subtlety.